Posted by marguerite noga on 5/20/24
Saying Yes to God’s Gifts
High on a hilltop overlooking the beautiful city of Santa Barbara there lived a wise old many whom people considered a sage. Legend has it that he could answer any question posed to him.
Two local boys decided they could deceive the ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 5/13/24
The Power of Love Can Overcome the Poison of Hate
A farmer once took two stubborn mules and tied them together by a 20-foot rope. Two bales of hay lay on the ground, one at either end of the field. The animals kept straining and tugging against ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 5/06/24
Love in the Twenty-First Century
There is a refrain that appears and reappears throughout today’s readings: the call to love one another. We are to love each other in the same way that Jesus loves us. Love makes us one with Jesus and the Father, and keeping the ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 4/23/24
Loving with True Commitment
Some years ago divers located a 400-year-old sunken ship off the coast of Ireland. Among the treasures they found on the ship was a wedding ring. When it was cleaned up, the divers noticed that the ring had an inscription on it. Etched on ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 4/10/24
A Time to Live Again
There was a study done by biologists in which they determined that, aerodynamically speaking, the bumble bee cannot fly. If you’ve ever taken a good look at a bumble bee, you’ll see why: the bumble bee has too large of a body mass ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 4/10/24
A Call to True Humility
After a large dinner at one of Hollywood’s stately mansions, a famous actor entertained the guests with stunning readings of Shakespeare. Then, as an encore, he offered to accept a request. A shy, older priest asked if he knew Psalm 23. ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 3/18/24
Planting Big Potatoes
In today’s gospel, Jesus says, “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat, but if it dies, it produces much fruit.”
I’d like to reflect on that one line, but since we ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 3/12/24
You Shall Have No Other Gods
I read about a young man whose search for God led him to seek out a wise priest as a spiritual guide. The young man was told to give up his dissolute life, pray in earnest, and purify his motives. Sick of ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 3/12/24
A Deeper Look at the Ten Commandments
I have a favorite anecdote about Mark Twain…
A nineteenth century industrial baron once said to Mark Twain, “Before I die I mean to make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I will climb to the top of Mt. Sinai ... Read More »
Posted by marguerite noga on 2/19/24
The God of the Flood? Or the God of the Rainbow?
A young boy sat on the front porch of a farmhouse with his grandfather. They heard a car coming down the seldom traveled dirt road. When the driver of the car, bearing out-of-state plates, saw them on ... Read More »
